Total 911 News

Six little Le Mans legends you need in your collection

Motorsport, News

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Josh Barnett

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If, like us, Porsche’s 17th 24 Hours of Le Mans victory last month has had you trawling through Weissach’s history books, you’ll love these six 1:43-scale models, available through Porsche’s official online shop.

From the original 1970 Porsche 917K to the 1998 Porsche 911 GT1-98, Spark Models have faithfully recreated many of Weissach’s Le Mans legends, complete in their iconic liveries.

With 11 months until Porsche get the chance to defend their crown at La Sarthe, a couple of these on your desk will help to fill that Le Mans-shaped void until June 2016 rolls around.

1970 Porsche 917K

As told to us by Richard Attwood himself in issue 117, Porsche’s first overall win at Le Mans wasn’t meant to happen. But, happen it did, with the no. 23 Porsche Salzburg-entered 917K romping home in atrocious conditions, putting Attwood, Hans Hermann and the 917 firmly into the history books.Price: £40

1971 Porsche 917K

If you’ve ever wondered why a Martini-liveried Porsche is so iconic, this car is the reason why. Cementing the 917’s legend, Helmut Marko and Gijs van Lennep took their short-tailed, magnesium-chassised car victory in 1971, setting a 24 Hours of Le Mans distance record that would not be bettered until 2010.Price: £40

1982 Porsche 956 LH

When the Porsche 956 made its Le Mans debut in 1982, Weissach’s first Group C prototype didn’t just win, it dominated. The factory Rothmans Porsche cars locked out the podium with the no. 1 long-tail 956 of Derek Bell and Jacky Ickx leading home the no. 2 and no. 3 machines.Price: £40

1986 Porsche 962C

The Porsche 962 picked up where its predecessor – the 956 – had left off, winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans at its first attempt. Victory in the 1986 running of the French classic – driven by Derek Bell, Hans Joachim Stuck and Al Holbert marked Porsche’s seventh straight win at La Sarthe and their 11th overall triumph.Price: £40

1994 Dauer 962 LM

By 1994 Group C was in its death knell and the Porsche 962 had long since been surpassed at the top of the tree. However, exploiting a loophole in the GT regulations, Dauer (with the official blessing and backing of Porsche) entered two of their 962 Le Mans ‘road cars’, securing victory with Mauro Baldi, Yannick Dalmas and Hurley Haywood.Price: £40

1998 Porsche 911 GT1-98

Porsche’s last outright victory at Le Mans came in 1998 with the rule-bending Porsche 911 GT1-98. With a mid-engined layout and carbon fibre monocoque it was a 911 in name only but Allan McNish, Stéphane Ortelli and Laurent Aïello used its reliability to good effect, seeing off the challenge of Mercedes-Benz.Price: £40